Australian-born allrounder Tama Canning played twice for the Australian Academy side on their tour of Zimbabwe in 1999-2000 before being offered a place in the New Zealand Cricket Academy following some good performance in the Shell Cup. In 2000 the ICC granted him exemption from the usual four-year residential criteria, and he made his one-day international debut in Pakistan in 2003-04 but failed to make his mark with either bat or ball. He was named the Auckland Player of the Year in 2003 after a good season in which he took 46 wickets in the State Championship at an average of 21.97, breaking John Bracewell's haul of 43 in 1986-87. He also scored 451 runs, averaging 37.58. A good start to the domestic season in 2004-05 kept him in the frame, and he was drafted into the one-day side in Australia in December 2004 although his return was brief as he took 1 for 80 in his only appearance. But he had a run-in with the authorities at the end of the 2005-06 season, and he retired in December 2006 after allegedly turning up to bat with a hangover. Heath Mills, the Players' Association manager, said Canning had struggled to meet his obligations as a professional cricketer, thereby prompting him to retire and look for a career outside cricket. He moved back to Perth, his former base. Martin Williamson December 2006

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